David Stern comments on labor issues, Kings, Artest
NBA commissioner David Stern joined the show to talk about the state of the league. Here are some of his takes …
— Stern said he’s confused watching the NFL Lockout. He said he doesn’t think Judge Susan Nelson understood the impact of her last ruling. He’s been working on these type of legal issues since the 1970s. Stern said he thinks the NFL would be wise to reach a deal. And he thinks the NBA and its union would be wise to have a deal.
— Stern said he wasn’t surprised Ron Artest won the Citizenship Award. He was particularly impressed with Artest thanking his therapist after the Lakers won the title last season. “It meant so much to so many people to hear someone who’s been struggling say that,” Stern said. “I think he’s really trying as hard as anyone can.”
— Stern had interesting comments on the future of the Sacramento Kings. He said he thinks Southern California could support another team, but he sounded like he needed some convincing. He said this is a tough situation and has a committee studying it now.
— Stern explained what we refer to as the “one-and-done” rule (he says there’s no “one-and-done” rule). Stern said a guy going to college for one year and going pro is better than them coming out of high school. Stern said from a business sense it’s better for a player to stay in college or a developmental league for a certain amount of time. Stern would love a 20-year-old age limit. He asked for it in collective bargaining, but they settled on 19. He hopes to get to 20 in the next round of bargaining. And he wishes colleges wouldn’t take players who want to spend one year in school.
— Dan asked him the last time he wore a jersey. Stern couldn’t remember.